WEC Inside 

   

1–15 March 2014 

Welcome to WEC Inside, your exclusive briefing from your WEC network

News 

The Africa Energy Indaba concluded last month (18–20 February) in Johannesburg, South Africa. The event is the WEC’s regular annual African gathering.

Africa’s wealth of energy resources and un-tapped potential was highlighted, as was the need for more enablers that can unlock energy access for the broader population and new markets.

Opening the Indaba, South Africa’s energy minister Dikobe Ben Martins told delegates that the country’s parliament had been instructed to fast-track proposed legislation to level the playing field between utility Eskom and independent power producers (IPPs). South Africa has recently opened its energy sector to renewables- and co-generation-based IPPs. The government saw this as a key way to enhance security of supply and address the country’s power shortage.

The minister also met with Christoph Frei at the conference.

The WEC launched its 2014 World Energy Issues Monitor at the event with a keynote speech by Brian Statham, Chair of SANEA and the WEC’s studies committee. This was followed by a media

Energy Indaba one step closer to unlocking Africa’s potential

studies committee. This was followed by a media roundtable including Marie-José Nadeau, WEC Chair, and Christoph Frei, WEC Secretary Gen-eral, discussing the findings of the study with re-porters.

Qedani Mahlangu, a cabinet member of Gaut-eng province’s infrastructure development arm, launched the province’s Green Agenda to drive the uptake of renewables and energy efficiency as response to the energy trilemma challenges high-lighted by the WEC.

Ms Mahlangu said: “We need to move beyond business as usual. The energy trilemma is more poignant to developing countries within the African continent than ever before.”

The Indaba played host to a number of side events including the UN’s Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL). Mohinder Gulati, the newly appoint-ed Chief Operating Officer of SE4ALL, led a dis-cussion on how the initiative will implement its goals of renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy access through an African regional hub and to increase country participation elsewhere.

1–15 March 2014 WEC Inside 1

What has been the key achievements of BEC a year after it brought together the memberships of BusinessNZ and the former Energy Federation of New Zealand?

The BusinessNZ Energy Council’s first year has been

one of consolidation and growing thought leader-

ship. As a new entity, with membership broader than

its predecessor, the BEC has sought to ensure that its

membership foundations are strong and to build its

reputation as a body that is internationally well con-

nected via WEC – able to involve its members with

WEC, and influence WEC’s programme. The develop-

ment of a New Zealand energy issues map is an

example, as is the recent visit by Joan MacNaughton

and Christoph Frei’s current visit.

Secretary General Christoph Frei is coming to New Zealand to speak about the World Energy Issues Monitor, and energy poverty. How are these issues relevant to New Zealand?

As a small trade-dependent nation, we are reliant on a

healthy global economy. It is often said that if Asia

sneezes, New Zealand catches a cold. So issues that

keep global executives awake might not be directly

relevant (New Zealand generates over 70% of our

electricity from renewable sources), but they inevitably

influence our energy system (for example, the com-

Interview 

mercial viability of electric vehicles). Rising energy

prices have seen energy poverty become a political

issue. It is wider than just energy – healthcare, hous-

ing quality, and income also impact energy poverty.

Talk us through New Zealand’s top energy issues?

New Zealand’s energy issues cut to the very heart of

the ‘energy trilemma’ – how do we use our abundant

natural resources in a way that is environmentally

sustainable, affordable and cost-reflective. With a

liberalised electricity market, and no need for subsi-

dies, geothermal and wind are the most economic

options for new power generation investment. There

is now a political debate on whether we continue to

rely on this market to ensure the electricity system

remains efficient, or revert back to a central purchas-

ing model, and subsidise solar panels. Whether to

exploit our abundant petroleum and

minerals resources – which provide us with a hedge

against rising international energy prices to which we

are vulnerable, in a way that is environmentally re-

sponsible is also a current issue of debate.

How do New Zealand’s top energy issues compare with the top global issues? We have much in common – for example, energy

prices, energy efficiency and the climate framework

feature prominently in both even though the underlying

reasons might be different (such as our high depend-

ence on international energy prices, especially

transport fuels).

As for differences, the economic health of China

and India – two of our major trade partners – is

increasingly important to us, and we have rebounded

from the economic recession with over 3% growth in

2014 predicted so the impact of the global recession is

less important.

One difference highlighted in Joan MacNaughton’s

recent discussions with our industry leaders is that

capital availability is not the problem here for new

energy projects that it is elsewhere.

New Zealand is one of the few countries that have an emissions trading scheme. How has this impact-ed on the energy sector and prices?

The scheme covers power and fuel with no free carbon

credits so is unique. But renewable sources of electric-

ity generation are already economic without a carbon

price (a carbon price will not see planned new thermals

being displaced by new renewables) and the long run

cost of new renewables sets the price at the margin. A

carbon price in New Zealand simply lengthens the

window of investment in renewable electricity

technologies. ■

The World Energy Issues Monitor will be a hot topic in New Zealand’s energy discussions this month as the BusinessNZ Energy Council (BEC), the WEC member committee, launches the report nationally. John Carnegie, Secretary of the committee, talks about what’s keeping New Zealand energy leaders awake at night.

News continued on page 2 ...

From left: WEC Chair Marie-José Nadeau, South African energy minister Dikobe Ben Martins, and WEC Africa Vice-Chair Bonang Mohale, at the opening plenary of the Africa Energy Indaba

During the week WEC Chair Marie-José Nadeau and Christoph Frei held talks in the capital Pretoria with Nelisiwe Magubane, Director General of Energy, South Africa, who recognised the im-portance of the energy trilemma and who pledged

John Carnegie is Secretary of BusinessNZ Energy Council, the WEC’s New Zealand member committee.